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Review of Battlestar Galactica (Special Events) (Bear McCreary)

FILMTRACKS RECOMMENDS:

Buy it... only if you seek to complete your collection of Bear McCreary's contribution to the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica television series with this conservative application of later instrumental and thematic elements into earlier plotlines once accompanied by sparse musical constructs.

Avoid it... if you expect this sixth album of music from the series to feature the same gorgeous thematic interludes or truly interesting sustained action heard especially in the albums representing the second and third seasons.

FILMTRACKS EDITORIAL REVIEW:

Battlestar Galactica (Special Events): (Bear McCreary) It is not uncommon for popular television series to utilize what they often call "special events" to allow an unwieldy script for a single episode to be expanded upon for a two-hour presentation. Such television movies are sometimes considered episodes within the run of a show, while at other times they are completely standalone entities aimed at the home video market. During the actual life of the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica series on the Sci-Fi Channel that began in 2003 and concluded in 2009, there was one of each type of event. In between the third and fourth seasons (airing in November, 2007), a coordinated effort between NBC's Universal home video division and the show's producers led to the budgeting for a movie called "Razor," technically part of the renewal of the show for a fourth season and preceded by a series of short "webisodes" used to promote the movie. Its story dealt with events not wrapped up satisfactorily in the third season, filling holes in the overarching storyline going back more than 40 years in the battles between human and their Cylon creations. The most intriguing aspect of this movie was the fact that the scenes shown from the earliest years of the conflict utilized character and ship designs from the 1978 Battlestar Galactica television series. Reception to "Razor" was strong, including attendance to some theatrical screenings across America, and the episode was greeted by several Emmy nominations, though it was criticized for not featuring most of the regular cast and failing to stand alone as its own story. Two years later, the second special event in the new Battlestar Galactica series followed the conclusion of the series by quite some time and gave a different, Cylon perspective of the same events depicted in the "Razor" movie. Targeted primarily at the video market once again was "The Plan," its production occurring during the active run of the show but held in its debut until well beyond its end. An airing of "The Plan" on the renamed Syfy channel in January, 2010, was rumored not to be the final debut of the concept, with hints by its director and star, Edward James Olmos, that more special events would come down the pipeline. Scoring both "Razor" and "The Plan" was series regular Bear McCreary, whose work on Battlestar Galactica was already highly regarded and released on popular albums by the time of "Razor." The scores were released on one product by La-La Land Records in early 2010, completing their offerings of the composer's major contributions to the concept.

McCreary's music for Battlestar Galactica generally became more accomplished and especially interesting on album as the seasons progressed, and both of these special events were produced at a time when the composer had already mapped out the musical arc of the entire series. It is fitting that they were released on one album because of the common storyline elements addressed by the two movies. They were an opportunity for McCreary to insert his thematic identities and instrumental elements from later seasons into the context of earlier music for the franchise, creating something of a hybrid that doesn't really fit comfortably with either. The instruments introduced in later years, such as the erhu, join the duduk, taiko, and others engrained in the entire run of the series, and snippets of themes are foreshadowed as well. For instance, the Earth theme closing the whole series has a plaintiff performance at the end of the main titles for "The Plan," and Starbuck's evolving destiny theme is conveyed in "Razor." Stu Phillips' classic theme is turned minor briefly in "Razor," too. The vedic Gayatri Mantra of Hindu fame used as inspiration for the main theme of the series became the primary theme of "The Plan," titled "Apocalypse." This song gives the tune a heavy metal edge that fits squarely with the final season of music for the show, though enthusiasts of the more passively lyrical music from McCreary will likely find it an irritation. A live performance of this piece, complete with ambient audience sound, finishes the album. The only new theme of note added to the dozens to exist in the history of the new Battlestar Galactica is the primary theme of "Razor," a seemingly appropriate oriental-flavored tune for the Kendra Shaw character. This pretty theme is heard first in the latter half of the main titles for the movie, and while it is alluring in its sensibilities, it isn't allowed to flourish like many of McCreary's other softer themes. Its omnipresence is tempered by its very restricted emotional range, making it a bit generic in the greater whole of the franchise's themes. The Cylons are again addressed with the usual taiko drum rhythms, returning to the somewhat more sparse form that embodied the earlier seasons of the show. Some of this material overlaps between the two movies, as a few of the identical action sequences are simply being shown from opposing perspectives. This technique of common approaches may explain why the album of these two McCreary scores mingles cues from the two movies together. For casual listeners, however, it would have been much preferred to hear the two scores separated on different halves of the same product. Absent any of the gorgeous thematic interludes or truly interesting sustained action in McCreary's work for the show, the duo of "Razor" and "The Plan" make for only an average listening experience appropriate only for devoted enthusiasts of the concept.  ***

TRACK LISTINGS:

Total Time: 68:27

• 1. Apocalypse (Theme From "The Plan")* - performed by Raya Yarbrough (4:06) • 2. Razor Main Title** (2:13) • 3. Arriving at Pegasus** (2:27) • 4. The Plan Main Title* (4:33) • 5. Attack on the Scorpion Shipyards** (3:37) • 6. Apocalypse, Pt. I* (6:36) • 7. Apocalypse, Pt. II* (2:35) • 8. Pegasus Aftermath** (4:09) • 9. Kendra's Memories** (2:43) • 10. Mayhem on the Colonies* (3:28) • 11. Civilian Standoff on the Scylla** (2:56) • 12. Husker in Combat** (1:54) • 13. Major Kendra Shaw** (5:03) • 14. Cavil Kills and Cavil Spares* - performed by Raya Yarbrough (2:12) • 15. The Hybrid Awaits** (2:43) • 16. Kendra and the Hybrid** (6:06) • 17. Princes of the Universe* (3:56) • 18. Starbuck's Destiny** (0:39) • 19. Apocalypse (Theme From "The Plan") (Bonus Live Version)* - performed by The Battlestar Galactica Orchestra (6:24)

NOTES & QUOTES:

The insert includes extensive information about the score and events from the composer, as well as lyrics and performance credits.

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